Transformer explosion at Fayetteville substation cuts power

What happened

On the night of 8 March 2014, a transformer explosion at an electric substation along Owen Drive near Cumberland Road in Fayetteville cut power to Public Works Commission customers. Early reporting put the figure at about 31,500 customers for about an hour. A later statement from the commission put the peak at between 25,000 and 30,000. How many Duke Energy Progress customers in Fayetteville were affected was not clear. A social media report, repeated by the commission, said Duke was reporting more than 180,000 customers out across parts of the Cape Fear region.

That wider figure was not confirmed in the newspaper account. Police radio reports said there was an explosion and sparks, the fire was quickly contained, and no one was injured. Power was reported out for about an hour in the Cross Creek Mall area, and the outage also reached Haymount and streets toward Skibo Road. The commission uses the substation, which is also a delivery point for Duke Energy Progress, and public access is restricted.

Contributing factors

The cause of the explosion was not known that night. A commission spokeswoman said a fire in a line or equipment owned by Duke Energy at the substation caused the blackout.

Lessons learned

1. Where more than one utility uses a substation, equipment ownership must be clear so the right party can isolate a fault quickly.
2. Early customer counts from different utilities and social media can conflict, so public updates should separate confirmed data from unconfirmed.

More lessons on electrical protection and isolation, emergency response and public communication, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

• Exact cause of the explosion
• Number of Duke Energy Progress customers affected
• Age and model of the transformer

This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.

Source

fayobserver.com